A Man On Mission Series

A truck driver was hauling a load of 500 penguins to the zoo. Unfortunately, his truck broke down, so he waved down another truck and offered the driver $500 to take the penguins to the zoo.

The next day, the first truck driver picked up his repaired truck. When he drove into town, he couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw the second truck driver walking across the road with 500 penguins, waddling single file behind him.

He jumped out of his truck, ran up to the driver and said, “What’s going on? I gave you $500 to take these penguins to the zoo!” To which the man responded, “I did take them to the zoo. But I had enough money left over so now we’re going to the movies.”

That guy didn’t fully understand what he was supposed to be doing. Likewise, too many men today are fuzzy about their sense of purpose and are not living as men on mission.

As we continue in our series called, “Back to the Beginning” from the Book of Genesis, our focus today is on how a man on mission is all about ministry. Last weekend we had front-row seats to the creation of Adam and were challenged with this truth: God created every person on purpose and put us in a place to live out His purposes. We’ll continue zooming in now as we see how God called Adam to live on mission for His glory in five different ways – He gave him a place, a purpose, permission, a prohibition, and punishment.

1. Place. Turn to Genesis 2:10-14: “A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.”

God created a place and provided the water necessary for life to flourish. This great river separated into four rivers – the Pishon, the Gihon, the Tigris, and the Euphrates.

• Pishon. This first river flowed around Havilah, a region with gold, bdellium (an aromatic resin that looked like pearls), and onyx stones. Interestingly, these precious items were later found in the tabernacle, the temple, and on the clothing of the high priest.

• Gihon. This river flowed around the land of Cush, likely located in the upper Nile territory of Egypt.

• Tigris. This river ran east of Assyria.

• Euphrates. This name means, “fruitfulness.”

Commentors have tried to locate these rivers and the exact location of the Garden of Eden, which everybody knows is in Door County, Wisconsin. While the Tigris and Euphrates are still rivers today, it’s quite likely the terrain and topography shifted over the centuries, especially since the worldwide flood would have rerouted these rivers.

The point is not so much where the Garden of Eden is today but that it was a real place, and these were four actual rivers. The use of proper names show Eden was an actual place. Eden is historical, not mythical. Because of what happened there, we aren’t meant to know where it is today because according to Genesis 3:24, we can’t enter it in this life anyway.

Another life-giving river will one day flow from God’s presence according to Revelation 22:1: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city.” Ezekiel 47:9 adds, “Everything will live where the water goes.” The main point is God graciously provided these rivers to water God’s garden.

Notice in verse 15 how God purposely and intentionally inserted Adam into this wonderful place of paradise: “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden…” The word “took” has the idea of “seizing” or “grasping” and shows how God picked Adam up and placed him in the place He had prepared for him. Interestingly, the word “put” means, “caused to rest.” Adam has been through a lot in his young life. He was made “Dirt-man” and then God breathed a soul into him.

Shortly after he stood up and looked around, he was whisked away by the Almighty and planted in the Garden of Eden. Dan Doriani writes: “In the Western mind, we work five days to earn the right to rest and play on the weekend. But God tells believers to start the week with rest before we work. In Scripture, rest is a gift, not a reward.” I wonder if Adam took a deep breath and put Psalm 46:1 into practice: “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”